\u201cSeeing the classic cars is definitely my favorite thing about the prom. Those are really cool,\u201d\u00a0 Carrera said. \u201cI got to ride in the 1938 Chevrolet so that was really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
Teaching in allied health science, Hoffman and her students have a long relationship with the transition program. She saw the event form in her own classroom and watched it grow, experiencing the impact over time.<\/p>\n
Hoffman said recreational therapy is a degree program offered at Sac State that focuses on increasing the quality of life of people with disabilities through purposeful and goal-oriented recreation and leisure. An event like the \u201cBest Buddies Prom\u201d provides transition program students opportunities to connect with the campus and other students.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe students were responsible for every aspect of this event, and it has evolved over the years,\u201d Hoffman said. \u201cIt\u2019s become a really exciting event for multiple classes throughout the Sacramento City Unified School District.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hoffman explained that students from the transition classrooms attend weekly recreation therapy classes, where they participate in activities led by other students and faculty.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re able to give our students experience working with individuals with disabilities weekly throughout the semester,\u201d Hoffman said. \u201cPeer support and the typical interactions with other college students, like at the prom, are really important in the developmental process. It supports both of the students\u2019 growth, which is invaluable.\u201d<\/p>\n
A junior majoring in liberal studies, Jannesa Marquez, was one of the students who helped create and set up decorations. She learned about the program through her \u201cBarrio Art in the Community\u201d class taught by Luis-Genaro Garcia. Barrio art is community-based art, and Garcia\u2019s class helps students learn from and engage with different communities through their classwork.<\/p>\n Marquez said transition students came to their class to learn from and alongside them, and they were later invited to help with prom preparation and decorations.<\/p>\n \u201cThe process of coming together as a class to figure out what decorations we could do in the time frame was really fun, and it came out really well,\u201d Marquez said. \u201cWe made the hanging stars, and the students created the chainlink papers behind the DJ.\u201d<\/p>\n Sac State student-athletes were also involved in bringing the prom together. They helped with setting up and taking down decorations, joined in dancing and acted as the hair and makeup crew, so everyone was as sparkly as they\u2019d like.<\/p>\n A senior majoring in health science and current president of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), Jamisen Rasmussen, was one of the student-athletes who helped with glam.<\/p>\n \u201cI got involved with the Best Buddies my sophomore year. I ran into them on campus and introduced myself,\u201d Rasmussen said. \u201cI thought it\u2019d be really great if athletics could get involved with the program.\u201d<\/p>\n Rasmussen was on the Community Engagement and Outreach Committee when she joined SAAC and was disappointed with the level of engagement at that time. She wanted to change that, so when she learned about events with the transition program she made sure SAAC was connected.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a part of our responsibility in SAAC as leaders on campus to engage with members of campus and beyond. We want to be leaders on and off the fields, water, court and track,\u201d Rasmussen said. \u201cWe threw the prom last year and it was one of their biggest events since 2019. I think it\u2019s even bigger this year.\u201d<\/p>\n Garrison Oliver-Jones, the student-athlete development coordinator and SAAC advisor, is constantly encouraging student-athletes to be connected to the community and finding them avenues to do so.<\/p>\n \u201cEach one of the student-athletes in SAAC has that intangible characteristic to want to create a positive change. SAAC wants to bridge the gap between athletics and the rest of the student population to strengthen the community,\u201d Oliver-Jones said. \u201cWorking with this group means just as much to the student-athletes as it does to the students we\u2019re here to support.\u201d<\/p>\n Students and the community can get more involved through Allied Health Science, the Disability Access Center<\/a>, the Sacramento City Unified School District<\/a> and the transition classrooms on campus.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Sacramento State campus adult transition program through Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) hosted their annual \u201cBest…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":279423,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[121,123,122],"class_list":["post-279422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/279422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=279422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/279422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/279423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=279422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=279422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=279422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/EMBED1-6-600x400.jpg\")
The Sacramento State transition program invited classrooms throughout the Sacramento City Unified School District to join them for their annual prom Friday, April 17, 2026. Sac State students created decorations, helped with hair and makeup and joined in celebrating. (Photo by Maribel Martinez<\/a>)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/EMBED2-6-600x400.jpg\")
Students celebrate in the University Union at \u201cBest Buddies Prom\u201d Friday, April 17, 2026. Jamisen Rasmussen and Colin Carrera dance and commemorate the school year coming to an end. (Photo by Maribel Martinez<\/a>)<\/p>\n